02 May 2010

Ampalaya with egg

Ummm... yeah... the photo above is Ampalaya (bitter gourd) with egg(s) alright. Not much we can do about the pair, however with a bit of spices and oil, we can come up with one of my favourite ways to cook this bitter vegetable (first on my list is pinakbet).

I remember that like most kids, I also did not like the taste of ampalaya in my day (decades ago), but our parents would say it's good for the blood. In some cases, like pinakbet, I'd steer clear of it (including okra, which until today I am not fond of) but by high school I found a liking to this vegetable!

Ingredients:
1 medium ampalaya
3 eggs, beaten (yup that's three. I hastily added another when I realized two eggs were not sufficient. Season with a bit of salt and pepper, but remember that you will still need to season the dish before serving)
1 medium tomato, seeds removed and chopped
oil
salt and pepper to taste

Procedure:
Peel the skin off the ampalaya. Slice lengthwise, then remove the seeds with a spoon. Slice thinly, then wash.

Heat oil in a pan over medium heat. Saute garlic, onion, followed by the chopped tomato.

Add the bitter gourd (ampalaya). Mix occasionally, then after around 3 minutes do a bite test to see if the ampalaya is tender and cooked. If not, continue cooking but I'd give the ampalaya a maximum 5 minutes time limit.

Add the beaten egg. Stir occasionally to help solidify the egg and mix with the ampalaya. When egg is nearly cooked, season with salt and pepper.